John E Davies

Kingofpauls' Ollie doesn't have that lithium jumper/ switch, it is too early, as is mine (218). OTH it is a fairy easy upgrade for around $140 in parts. John Davies Spokane WA

The filter bowl is only a few inches from the pump inlet port, it should be enough, if there is any suction being created. You can remove the inlet hose and put your finger over that open end, you should feel strong suction with the pump running. It is most likely that a defective part will fail when it is brand new, we call that teething pains. My water heater board blew a resistor in the first week. I replaced it with a used board of unknown age and it has been fine ever since. You should be able to get a pump at any RV store, swap it out yourself, and repair the original to keep for for a spare, unless you want to go through the huge time wasting hassle of trying for a warranty repair. https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/2036-suburban-hot-water-heater-failed-a-dealer-repair-story-and-lesson/ John Davies Spokane WA

This spring loaded one-way valve controls the grey tank ventilation. It is supposed to open under suction (like draining the tank) and close at other times (to prevent stinky odors). These are used in houses, and those are known to get plugged up. So you should perhaps check your Ollie vent every year or three.... especially if you are smelling the tank contents. You must remove the rear galley drawers - grab the two orange drawer thingies with your finger tips and squeeze them toward your palms, and lift the drawer up and out of the slides. The vent is right at the back upper corner: The little cap/ cover swivels around, you can pry it loose with your fingers to look inside. Push the plunger up and down a few times to make sure it isn't sticking. Here is what it is supposed to do: Here is an interesting comment from the Oatey FAQ about RV use: Q Is the Sure-vent approved for use in a RV? A Yes, with exceptions. When the RV is stationary, the Sure-Vent will properly vent the drains for the kitchen and bathroom. If the RV is in motion and depending on how the DWV system was assembled from the factory, positive pressure could stop the Sure-Vent from opening. I have noticed a very occasional stink when towing in especially challenging terrain - very steep grades, lots of increasing elevation change and lots of hairpin turns. I am not sure if the gases are coming out of this valve or out of the sink drain...? Or if that is even related. Amazon - Oatey 39012 1.5 in. NPT ABS in-Line Vent, Black FYI, my vent was not even visible, the sewer pipe assembly was hanging down unsupported, this thread might be worth looking at: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/6721-how-to-secure-the-loose-grey-drain-vent-plumbing-under-the-galley/ At the very least, give the black pipe a shove to make sure it isn't flopping around, that motion can break glue joints. That is a whole lot of info about an obscure little device most people don't even know exists...:) I am not even sure if this is mentioned in the Owners documents. Can someone comment? John Davies Spokane WA

It sounds like an internal failure of the pump, like a bad one-way check valve. Try removing the inlet filter bowl, filling it with water and putting it back on. If that won't prime it, you will have to remove it and either open it up out get a replacement. One good thing, the pump is super easy to work on in an Ollie.... John Davies Spokane WA

You could have asked them to lift one wheel at a time by the axle tube, close to the brake, or under the spring perch, leaving all three other ones on the ground. That doesn’t stress anything. Lifting three tons off the ground that way does…. However, I personally would just use the factory jacks to raise the trailer completely off the ground, as long as nobody crawls under it, no worries. “Jack points? We don’t need no stinking jack points!” This is contrary to current factory recommendations. But in the Old Days it was OK. The jacks are plenty strong enough, unless there is a failure at one of their attach points. This is only for a solid level surface like concrete. John Davies Spokane WA

I wonder why your plug keeps coming out? It sounds as if the outlet is defective. Mine fit very tightly. There is no way it would have worked it’s way out, it was fine for five years…. Did you ever submit a service request? At the very least, it lets Oliver know that there is a problem with some hulls. Maybe enough complaints will get them to install a junction box during production instead of this stupid setup😳. Or issue a tech bulletin about it for existing trailers. Even if it technically “meets RV code”, it is absolutely dangerous, especially in your situation, where you are constantly fumbling around in a (potentially) wet area! No GFCI protection! ZAP! Please take pictures, the LE may be different from the LE2. You can post them in this thread or start a new one if you like. Thanks. John Davies Spokane WA

EDIT: It is possible that your fridge cord is not quite long enough to reach the new box, You can open up the bottom fridge access panel (outside the trailer) and see if there is some slack there that you can use to make it a little longer. The cable comes in at the very bottom left corner and attaches to the main circuit board under the plastic cover.If you still don't have enough length, you will have to remove that section and replace it with a longer piece of "house wire". Mine reached, barely. If you do run a new wire, be sure to re-seal the opening, That area should be "propane tight" to prevent a leak from penetrating the hull. John Davies Spokane WA

Yes, four big (#12 I think) sheet metal screws CUT TO LENGTH - there is only 3/8" of HDPE material to screw them into, which is why I used so many screws. Be exceptionally careful drilling the holes, so you don't punch holes into the outer hull! I have mounted blocks of this material elsewhere, I much prefer the 1" thickness since it grabs the screw threads sooooooo much better. John Davies Spokane WA

Yes, since there is no sink in the pictures 😉 John Davies Spokane WA

Bill thanks! That is the first time this has happened, do you know what caused it in the first place? John Davies Spokane WA

re t Fabricate a bracket from 0.050" aluminum sheet, that will allow you to attach the box to the existing hose support. After installing the blank plugs and two threaded ports, seal them from the inside with PVC cement. Remove the outlet cover, outlet and the blue box. (The lower outlet screw hole was stripped, so the screw just spun. I bent up the outlet, cut the wires and removed the two screws holding the box to its support block.) Reroute the original wires to the new box after cutting and stripping the ends. This shows the new j box next to the old parts. Afer CAREFULLY joining the wires, install the box plate onto the water hose mount. Secure the inside of the each of the two harnesses with a nylon tie. Leave the two bottom holes unsealed, water cannot get in that way. Install split loom and secure the fridge power wire to an existing hole in the original outlet mount. This pic is rotated! The finished j box. Note that this shows the additional 1 inch R5 insulation I also added to this area and under the range top. Black to black, white to white, green to bare ground. Label the cover before installing it! I think this should be done at the factory, they could simply install a larger HDPE block and attach the box directly to that. EDIT: I submitted a Service Ticket with this request. I will update this thread with any new info. John Davies Spokane WA

NEW JUNCTION BOX: This has literally been bugging me for five years, from the first time I saw a picture of the outlet mounted right below the faucet water supply hoses and the drain pipes. It is not even a GFCI outlet! If there is a water leak, it could be dangerous. Sorry for the rotated pics, some come through this way! Remove the two lower drawers by squeezing the orange release things, and lift up and out. Remove the flip out tray screws. Remove the tee piece (three long screws) and then the 1/8' plywood access panel. DISCONNECT SHORE POWER, double check to make sure these wires cannot be energized! Flip the main breaker to make sure! I measured the space and found that it is too tight to install a waterproof "in use" outlet cover. I even tried, I ordered one from Amazon, I can return it easily. Nope, it won't work. I decided to eliminate the outlet entirely. I am not sure why Oliver did not hard wire this in the first place...... I found this plastic junction box at Home Depot: Here is what comes in that kit: This is a true approved 100% waterproof cover; Dimensions. It is plenty thin to fit in that area. More to follow. John Davies Spokane WA

I opened up my sink access panels for the first time in five years (Yeah, I know!) and found the black pipes just flopping around, there was zero support between the sink bottom and the grey tank itself, many feet away. Video: Oliver Legacy Elite 2 Sink grey pipe With that much possible movement, it really stresses the glue joints. I decided to use a ubolt and a 1 inch spacer, to remove all motion and also to keep the down angle so water would flow properly toward the tank. (If I moved the pipe hard up against the back of the cabinet, the angle was UP..) I slid 3/8" automotive fuel line over the ubolt as padding, and a 1" thick piece of HDPE material, the same stuff Oliver uses throughout their trailers. I also replaced the plain nuts with self- locking ones. SORRY, some of these pics are coming through rotated...! This shows the tee piece and the 1/8" plywood access panel removed. This shows how it goes together, using a scrap of pipe. Use the legs to locate the holes in the wood: Use a 90 degree square to draw the center of those lines. The legs need to be cut off, anything longer than this will mean you don't have enough room to install it into the holes. Finished, the pipe is drawn up tight against the wood, no movement! This shows the slight down angle of the pipe, in reference to the wood cross piece. John Davies Spokane WA

This is easy, it just takes a few nylon ties. Remove the drawers by squeezing inward on both of the orange brackets and lift up. Remove the screws holding the flip out sponge tray. The following pics show the space with the wood tee and the thin plywood access panel removed, that is not needed for this mod. Sorry, the first two pics are rotated and I cannot straighten them out! Does anyone know why this happens? The faucet hose has a big weight and hangs down at random over the top drawer.,..,,\ The blue clip secures the two sections of the quick release coupling. At least one owner had their hose come open and it leaked long enough to trash the wood underneath. This tie method will prevent the clip from coming off until you want it to. There is another vertical tie hidden on the far side. This hose can leak if the oring seal fails or the two halves separate. It would be prudent to inspect this area annually! If you are hooked to city water, it can leak like crazy and you won't know until you see water coming out from the hull drains, and maybe all over the drawer contents. If you are using the 12 volt pump, it will alert you by cycling rapidly IF you do not have the accumulator (mine does not). If you have an accumulator, that will mask the leak to a degree!. This is the first time in five years that I have looked in here, it was completely dry. John Davies Spokane WA

The early hulls like mine (218) did not come with an accumulator. Tho an owner could have installed one. John Davies Spokane WA

Have you ever flushed the system with vinegar? It dissolves the hard crusty deposits that occur in the hot lines and faucets. It might just dissolve whatever is causing the seal to leak. There have been a number of threads about how to do this. John Davies Spokane WA

I am concerned about how rigid they are. They are much stronger than the thin walled aluminum window frame. If something should impact an eyebrow, like a falling tree branch or an object thrown up on the highway (a truck tire carcass) it could destroy the frame and perhaps damage the hull’s fiberglass window opening. A plastic one would just flex or explode without transferring all that energy to the Ollie window frame and glass. Could this design be reproduced in much thinner lexan, while using the same aluminum clamps? I have actually been through wind storms where large branches came crashing down. I always like to see where the “fuse” in a design is located. I designed in failure (break) points in my mud guard brackets and rear cargo rack mount. In this case, unfortunately the fuse appears to be the window itself… I am not in line to buy this Beta model. But they sure are pretty. John Davies Spokane WA

It is OK to dump into your septic system, with appropriate cautions about holding tank chemicals, so you don’t kill the bacteria in your home tanks, but it may not be OK to connect to a public system. It is expressly forbidden in Spokane city by code. But if you live over the County line (which is just yards away from my home), it is OK. It makes very little sense, but you need to check! Just make sure you do the job right with permit and inspection, or you could create trouble for when you sell the house… and this is one job that I would hire a contractor to perform. BTW in another house I used to dump my boat’s black tank into the septic system, I used an electric macerator (mounted near the holding tank) and a 3/4” garden hose. I ran the hose inside the basement and into the toilet there. It worked perfectly, but I was extremely careful to never let the hose come out of the bowl during the pumping !!! John Davies Spokane WA

Not only would that create a lot of sparks and noise, it might damage the end of the lever, depending on how long it took before you figured out what happened and also found a safe place to pull over. In rush hour traffic in a big city, the sparks would create some panic from other drivers. But at night it would look great! Like this train track grinder: Sparks Fly on LORAM Rail Grinder Train as It Grinds Railroad Crossing I found it at Home Depot also, it looks identical. These probably come out of the same factory in China. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-5-16-in-3-8-in-Red-Load-Binder-803112/203958821 And I found these locks, the first one could take a padlock: One last comment…. your hitch is the old style, but for $100, Andersen Customer Service will send you their latest version with the very effective water seal, and a new ball assembly and whaletail, so it doesn’t wake up the campground when it gets wet overnight. Just tell them it is locking up and shrieking. John Davies Spokane WA

That is really slick, thanks for posting. Here is the HF binder: https://www.harborfreight.com/5400-lb-capacity-heavy-duty-non-ratcheting-load-binder-36022.html General info: https://www.myteeproducts.com/blog/how-to-use-chain-binders/ I don’t see any reason to not use these, but I do very much believe that you should secure the handle when it is tensioned. The lever stores a lot of potential energy, depending on how tight you adjust the Andersen nuts. Putting a safety device in each one would eliminate its accidental release, for example if some large kid wandered up and messed with it. One reason I like the Andersen is that it doesn’t have steel spring bars like all other weight distributing designs. You just added two “springs” 😬. Plus an additional 15+ pounds of mass. Some owners might not want to increase the tongue weight. Do the binders require periodic lubrication, or do they have self lubricating bushings? Can you buy cad plated binders? Do you plan to put something under them when disconnected so they won’t get rusty? Can you post some closeup still images of them tensioned? It is hard to see details from your video. How close is the handle end to the chain? Would a big stainless carabiner work as a safety? Is there a reason you placed them where you did? Why not right at the whaletail, that would eliminate two cuts. Nobody likes cutting hardened steel! Thanks. John Davies Spokane WA

Once you have used the proper tools you won’t want to go back. This is currently unavailable from Amazon, maybe another source will have it. ABN Bearing Press Bushing Driver Set - Seal Driver Set Bearing Driver Set Bearing Press Kit, 18-65mm, 74mm Metric Discs John Davies Spokane WA

Would you mind describing those compounds? I now have a Dewalt 20v random orbit polisher and would like to polish the Ollie - it is in great shape so I only need a fine finish compound. I already have automotive polishes, but I know they are not aggressive enough. Edit - I just read this article, maybe I don’t want to do this with my polisher… can you comment? https://www.best-auto-detailing-tips.com/boat-buffer.html Thanks. John Davies Spokane WA

I think it would be fine for light duty towing in the East, but you will probably find it lacking in steep mountain grades and at high altitude. What year and what engine? What is the payload? The 2022 V6 develops peak torque at 4700 rpm, that is extraordinarily high. You would have to be OK with driving in low gears all the time, and it would get very wearing for the passengers. https://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f10/problems-towing-a-19-0r-21-with-a-toyota-highlander-19419.html If you already own the Highlander, then give it a try, but in your shoes I would definitely not go out and buy one for towing the small Ollie. A Sequoia (especially the new hybrid model) would be a dandy choice! John Davies Spokane WA

That is good news. Do you know if the driver side turbo is able to be accessed the same way, does the steering column have to come out too? What is your payload? How do you like the interior? Thanks for the report, I am quite interested in the new Sequoia as a LC200 replacement if mine burns up or gets stolen, I am trying to accept the location of the turbos, which isn’t at all great, but if you can get to them without removing the cab or entire body, then that is good news. John Davies Spokane WA

Yes, six because Oliver chooses to buy ******* axles, pardon the expression, with the bolt pattern of a heavy 5000 pound axle, but the bearings and spindles of a 3500 pound axle. So you cannot install a plug and play disk brake kit, there are none offered. 😤 John Davies Spokane WA